The only remedy at our disposal as voters is to defeat Trump at the ballot box. We have no control over the progress of the Georgia criminal proceeding, so we should refrain from injecting that proceeding with electoral significance it does not have.
Let's be clear about what WE, active Democrats need to do starting today.
The DOJ around the US is doing a fine job hunting down witches in America. So far they have found the crime boss witch 91 times✌️.
And his MAGA support witches 10s.of times..(Are Rudy and Sidney Powell not from the central casting witchery,?)
Our job is to create a LANDSLIDE WIN in 2024!!
What we get to do is support candidates and policies that are doing great good for the American people including robust economic recovery, rebuilding infrastructure, returning critical manufacturing to the US, returning American leadership to the world stage, passing national legislation to guarantee a women's right to choose, facilitating lower drug costs, and so forth..
And what does the GOP get to do?
Support a mob boss who perpetuated an electoral crime spree and his senior MAGA attack dogs.
This is no where near a level playing field..
If each of us can drive 5 to 10 additional Democratic votes to the polls in 2024, we will get Uncle Joe 87 million votes, 10 million more votes than in 2020.Lets enjoy this blessed time for Dems and go get A LANDSLIDE
Robert, a wonderful newsletter today. I feel as you do: Fani Willis is a fantastic example of the best in America. Honesty, integrity and courage to face these criminals and do justice for each and every one of We The People. She is a true hero, on the biggest scale. Thank you.
I will let the words of Stuart Stevens speak for me: “This is basically a Rico indictment of the Republican Party. As it should be. Every Republican elected official who refused to acknowledge the winner of the 2020 election is an unindicted co-conspirator. “
My thoughts of Fulton County DA Fani Willis with her strength and tenacity bring back to me a sense of pride in our country. I see she is only 52 years old and it's exciting to think of what else her future will bring in leadership for this nation.
This indictment is going to cost The Defendant money, big money. I wonder if his supply of OPM will cover it all. He's got his own legal expenses but he's also going to have to subsidize the defenses of 18 co-defendants, for fear that any he fails to aid may decide to flip. And Willis can surely cite his behavior in other courts to argue that he should have to put up a cash bond to ensure he respects the integrity of the process. The same may apply to his co-defendants as well. It'll be a big bill, and if his partisans don't pay it, he'll have to use his own money.
More good news out of Georgia- Bert Jones, the fake elector turned lieutenant governor of Georgia will be investigated!!
From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“A state agency is moving ahead with plans that will determine whether Lt. Gov. Burt Jones faces criminal charges as part of a scheme to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
Jones is one of 30 people who prosecutors said participated in a conspiracy to overturn the election but were not charged in a Fulton County indictment released late Monday. But Jones may yet face charges, and his fate will rest with a special prosecutor who will determine whether further investigation is needed.
Pete Skandalakis, executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia, said he has reviewed the Fulton County indictment and hopes to appoint a special prosecutor to consider Jones’ actions soon.
In a social media post Tuesday afternoon, Jones did not directly address a possible investigation of his actions. He said Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had spent millions of taxpayer dollars and 2½ years “orchestrating a constant media and PR campaign for the sole purpose of furthering her own political career.”
“While the Fulton County district attorney continues to pursue the political vendettas of the past — I have and will continue to look forward, solving the most pressing issues facing our city and our state,” Jones added.
The steps toward a possible investigation of Jones follow Monday’s indictment of 19 people — including former President Donald Trump — on allegations that they conspired to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia in 2020.
Jones, a state senator at the time, played a prominent role as Republicans in the General Assembly considered rejecting Georgia’s official presidential electors and appointing a slate of Trump electors instead.
Jones and a handful of other senators pressed for a special legislative session to consider appointing the Trump electors, supported lawsuits that sought to void the results and pressed Vice President Mike Pence to reject the official results when Congress met to certify Biden’s victory.
Monday’s Fulton County indictment did not name Jones, but it referenced his efforts to rally support for overturning Biden’s victory. It noted that on Dec. 7, 2020, a tweet by “unindicted co-conspirator Individual 8″ urged Georgians to “call your state Senate & House Reps & ask them to sign the petition for a special session.
We must have free & fair elections in GA & this is our only path to ensuring every legal vote is counted.”
The tweet matches one that Jones shared on the same date.
The indictment mostly notes Jones’ role as one of the fake Republican electors. In that capacity, the indictment says Individual 8 participated in a conspiracy that involved impersonating a public officer by falsely saying they were the state’s duly elected presidential electors, forging fake Electoral College paperwork, making false statements and writings, and filing false documents.
The indictment includes charges against some Republican electors — such as state Sen.
Shawn Still — but not others. It’s unclear whether Willis intended to charge Jones, but she never got the chance.
Last year, Jones objected to being investigated by Willis after she hosted a fundraiser for the eventual Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, Charlie Bailey.
Jones argued Willis’ political support for his opponent constituted a conflict of interest.
Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney disqualified Willis and her office from questioning Jones as part of their investigation. The judge asked the prosecuting attorneys council — a state agency that assists district attorneys — to appoint an outside prosecutor to investigate Jones.
Skandalakis was waiting for Willis to complete her investigation.
Now that the grand jury has acted, he said he has reached out to Willis to obtain a copy of a special grand jury report on her investigation and to get a briefing on the investigation to date.
With that information in hand, Skandalakis said he will find a special prosecutor to make the final decision on whether more investigation or criminal charges against Jones are warranted.
Finding a special prosecutor may not be easy. Skandalakis said state law limits the special prosecutor’s compensation to less than $60 per hour — not much for many lawyers — plus some travel costs. If the prosecutor wants the help of an investigator or administrative assistant, he or she must bear the cost out of pocket.
It’s unclear how soon Skandalakis will appoint a prosecutor or how soon a prosecutor will make a determination about Jones’ case. But Skandalais said the special prosecutor will not be bound by the timetable of Willis’ case.”
"I dreamt of home confinement, permanently, in an ivory tower at bedminster, but, wait for it, where he can SEE the golf course as it is seized & turned into housing for the homeless/immigrants!"
I was looking forward to see Lindsay Graham as a co-conspirator. I seem to recall him making a dodgy call to GA officials about the election. He claimed the call was related to his job as senator but it seemed totally unrelated to his job. I’m disappointed.
Follow the indictments against Trump and 18 others in Georgia with this Relationship Map. It includes audio files of the indictments, videos, links to more information and searchable by the type of crime.
Thank you, Robert. Couldn't sleep, drawn to my computer. Reading your comforting thoughts eased my mind. We're going to win this! there are more of us! and a much more 'woke' generation coming to voting age. I think TCinLA's suggestion is right, we should refrain from injecting the Georgia proceeding with electoral significance it doesn't have! And, follow the courage of Fani Willis and the amazing work she's done for our task ahead.
Did I get this right? It seems to me that that greatest part of the Georgia indictment are: 1. RICO - I love it, corruption, criminality being identified and named and prosecuted. And 2. State-based - no opportunity for pardons. Atty Hubbell has posited some possible squeaking into federal territory, but it doesn't seem very threatening. Did I get this right?
And then, think about this woman, Fani Willis, what persistence, what detail, and how much this will consume her as the trial(s) unfold. How remarkable she is!
Several things for Trump to think about following his charging, arraignment, and booking in Georgia on charges of interfering in and seeking to overturn Georgia’s 2020 Presidential election results.
First, Georgia has stricter laws governing the conditions of release. Bail can be granted only if there is “no significant risk of intimidating witnesses or otherwise obstructing the administration of justice,” per Georgia’s witness intimidation law. Trump, who has been known to attack judges and witnesses — including his former vice president — on his Truth Social platform, warned in early August after his D.C. arraignment: “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!” (In a filing, Trump’s lawyers called the post “generalized political speech, not directed to this case.”) If Trump’s prior behavior is any guide to his likely future behavior it appears he has a very short fuse on controlling his behavior toward witnesses. Just as in the federal indictments he and his attorneys will receive pretrial discovery including witness testimony. Will he seek to disparage and intimidate those witnesses?
Trump will have a mug shot and be fingerprinted: Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat has said that if Trump is charged, he will be subject to a mug shot and fingerprinting. The former president did not get a mug shot when he was arraigned in Washington, Miami or Manhattan. Trump has until Aug. 25 to surrender at the Fulton County Jail for booking. The Fulton County jail is a pretty squalid environment. That will undoubtedly be a stark contrast to the gilded Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster Golf Club lifestyle Trump is used to.
Also, in Georgia there are no restrictions on televising of courtroom proceedings including pretrial motions hearings. This will provide increased transparency on court proceedings and see Trump properly treated and portrayed as a criminal defendant. Will this tarnish the image of strength he seeks to portray and protect? Time will tell.
The only remedy at our disposal as voters is to defeat Trump at the ballot box. We have no control over the progress of the Georgia criminal proceeding, so we should refrain from injecting that proceeding with electoral significance it does not have.
You have not written truer words, Robert.
Let's be clear about what WE, active Democrats need to do starting today.
The DOJ around the US is doing a fine job hunting down witches in America. So far they have found the crime boss witch 91 times✌️.
And his MAGA support witches 10s.of times..(Are Rudy and Sidney Powell not from the central casting witchery,?)
Our job is to create a LANDSLIDE WIN in 2024!!
What we get to do is support candidates and policies that are doing great good for the American people including robust economic recovery, rebuilding infrastructure, returning critical manufacturing to the US, returning American leadership to the world stage, passing national legislation to guarantee a women's right to choose, facilitating lower drug costs, and so forth..
And what does the GOP get to do?
Support a mob boss who perpetuated an electoral crime spree and his senior MAGA attack dogs.
This is no where near a level playing field..
If each of us can drive 5 to 10 additional Democratic votes to the polls in 2024, we will get Uncle Joe 87 million votes, 10 million more votes than in 2020.Lets enjoy this blessed time for Dems and go get A LANDSLIDE
Robert, a wonderful newsletter today. I feel as you do: Fani Willis is a fantastic example of the best in America. Honesty, integrity and courage to face these criminals and do justice for each and every one of We The People. She is a true hero, on the biggest scale. Thank you.
I will let the words of Stuart Stevens speak for me: “This is basically a Rico indictment of the Republican Party. As it should be. Every Republican elected official who refused to acknowledge the winner of the 2020 election is an unindicted co-conspirator. “
FINALLY! Mark Meadows indicted!!!
My thoughts of Fulton County DA Fani Willis with her strength and tenacity bring back to me a sense of pride in our country. I see she is only 52 years old and it's exciting to think of what else her future will bring in leadership for this nation.
Finally, the mafia Don is indicted on racketeering charges. Perfect.
This indictment is going to cost The Defendant money, big money. I wonder if his supply of OPM will cover it all. He's got his own legal expenses but he's also going to have to subsidize the defenses of 18 co-defendants, for fear that any he fails to aid may decide to flip. And Willis can surely cite his behavior in other courts to argue that he should have to put up a cash bond to ensure he respects the integrity of the process. The same may apply to his co-defendants as well. It'll be a big bill, and if his partisans don't pay it, he'll have to use his own money.
More good news out of Georgia- Bert Jones, the fake elector turned lieutenant governor of Georgia will be investigated!!
From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“A state agency is moving ahead with plans that will determine whether Lt. Gov. Burt Jones faces criminal charges as part of a scheme to overturn the 2020 presidential election in Georgia.
Jones is one of 30 people who prosecutors said participated in a conspiracy to overturn the election but were not charged in a Fulton County indictment released late Monday. But Jones may yet face charges, and his fate will rest with a special prosecutor who will determine whether further investigation is needed.
Pete Skandalakis, executive director of the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia, said he has reviewed the Fulton County indictment and hopes to appoint a special prosecutor to consider Jones’ actions soon.
In a social media post Tuesday afternoon, Jones did not directly address a possible investigation of his actions. He said Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had spent millions of taxpayer dollars and 2½ years “orchestrating a constant media and PR campaign for the sole purpose of furthering her own political career.”
“While the Fulton County district attorney continues to pursue the political vendettas of the past — I have and will continue to look forward, solving the most pressing issues facing our city and our state,” Jones added.
The steps toward a possible investigation of Jones follow Monday’s indictment of 19 people — including former President Donald Trump — on allegations that they conspired to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s victory in Georgia in 2020.
Jones, a state senator at the time, played a prominent role as Republicans in the General Assembly considered rejecting Georgia’s official presidential electors and appointing a slate of Trump electors instead.
Jones and a handful of other senators pressed for a special legislative session to consider appointing the Trump electors, supported lawsuits that sought to void the results and pressed Vice President Mike Pence to reject the official results when Congress met to certify Biden’s victory.
Monday’s Fulton County indictment did not name Jones, but it referenced his efforts to rally support for overturning Biden’s victory. It noted that on Dec. 7, 2020, a tweet by “unindicted co-conspirator Individual 8″ urged Georgians to “call your state Senate & House Reps & ask them to sign the petition for a special session.
We must have free & fair elections in GA & this is our only path to ensuring every legal vote is counted.”
The tweet matches one that Jones shared on the same date.
The indictment mostly notes Jones’ role as one of the fake Republican electors. In that capacity, the indictment says Individual 8 participated in a conspiracy that involved impersonating a public officer by falsely saying they were the state’s duly elected presidential electors, forging fake Electoral College paperwork, making false statements and writings, and filing false documents.
The indictment includes charges against some Republican electors — such as state Sen.
Shawn Still — but not others. It’s unclear whether Willis intended to charge Jones, but she never got the chance.
Last year, Jones objected to being investigated by Willis after she hosted a fundraiser for the eventual Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor, Charlie Bailey.
Jones argued Willis’ political support for his opponent constituted a conflict of interest.
Superior Court Judge Robert McBurney disqualified Willis and her office from questioning Jones as part of their investigation. The judge asked the prosecuting attorneys council — a state agency that assists district attorneys — to appoint an outside prosecutor to investigate Jones.
Skandalakis was waiting for Willis to complete her investigation.
Now that the grand jury has acted, he said he has reached out to Willis to obtain a copy of a special grand jury report on her investigation and to get a briefing on the investigation to date.
With that information in hand, Skandalakis said he will find a special prosecutor to make the final decision on whether more investigation or criminal charges against Jones are warranted.
Finding a special prosecutor may not be easy. Skandalakis said state law limits the special prosecutor’s compensation to less than $60 per hour — not much for many lawyers — plus some travel costs. If the prosecutor wants the help of an investigator or administrative assistant, he or she must bear the cost out of pocket.
It’s unclear how soon Skandalakis will appoint a prosecutor or how soon a prosecutor will make a determination about Jones’ case. But Skandalais said the special prosecutor will not be bound by the timetable of Willis’ case.”
All hail to Fani Willis!!! I am glad that her name will go down in history as someone who stood up for the rule of law and stood up to bullies.
A Summary of 3 Indictments...
WaPo Reader identified as "John Hornby2":
"I dreamt of home confinement, permanently, in an ivory tower at bedminster, but, wait for it, where he can SEE the golf course as it is seized & turned into housing for the homeless/immigrants!"
AND,
WaPo reader identified as "The Choobs":
Jack Smith: “You are going down, Trump.”
Fani Willis: “Hold my beer.”
I was looking forward to see Lindsay Graham as a co-conspirator. I seem to recall him making a dodgy call to GA officials about the election. He claimed the call was related to his job as senator but it seemed totally unrelated to his job. I’m disappointed.
From Denialad: donbialostosky.substack.com
Back when AG Garland was hesitating,
DA Willis began investigating
Trump’s interference in Georgia’s election
And ended up discovering connections.
The call to Raffensperger got her started,
But ’cause Ms. Willis was not fainthearted,
She uncovered how Trump and his minions
Attempted to get inside Dominion’s
Voting machines in Georgia’s Coffee County.
As she kept digging, her inquiry found he
Was head of a multi-state enterprise
Consistent in its goal and organized
To get states to reverse their vote outcomes
And come up with the necessary sums
To give Trump an electoral college win
And give his lawyers what they’d need to spin
Their skirting the Electoral College Act
So a compliant VP could redact
The final count on January sixth.
The project took a lot of dirty tricks
And willing dirty tricksters who would play them—
The list of names is way too long to say them
Here, but eighteen others face her charges.
The reason that the accused list’s so large is
She’s charged them in a case of racketeering.
Their actions of election interfering
Are more than just a bunch of separate crimes;
Together they show criminal designs
That implicate a leader even when
It’s not directly possible to pin
Each act on his direct explicit orders.
If actions of all levels of supporters
Can be shown to contribute to the scheme,
It’s reasonable for the jury to deem
Them all as part of one culpable racket—
The RICO law has been set up to crack it.
Willis lists 161 acts,
Each one supported by the facts,
That were committed, her jurors agree,
“In furtherance of the conspiracy.”
Trump’s “speech falsely declaring victory”
Was the initial act predictory
Of all the actions large and small that followed
Committed by him and by those that swallowed
And chose to act on that initial lie.
Some to be true electors falsely swore,
While others knocked on Ruby Freeman’s door.
And Trump and Giuliani told big lies
To urge state officials to compromise
Election results they knew to be true,
A thing the best of them chose not to do.
It wasn’t just in Georgia that they tried;
In half a dozen other states they lied
And prodded Trump’s fake electors to sign
Certificates that were not genuine.
They tried to undermine the DOJ
And pressure the Vice President to say
That he would count the fake elector slates
That they had manufactured in the states.
The law says even though the racket failed,
The racketeers can still be tried and jailed.
The RICO charge is one of forty-one
Counts the Georgia grand jury has drawn.
The others concern several kinds of lying,
Influencing witnesses and trying
To get officials to betray their oaths.
There’re forgery and perjury both.
There’s fraud attempted and there’s fraud conspired—
So many ways to catch cheaters and liars!
Follow the indictments against Trump and 18 others in Georgia with this Relationship Map. It includes audio files of the indictments, videos, links to more information and searchable by the type of crime.
https://thedemlabs.org/2023/08/15/follow-trumps-georgia-indictments-with-relationship-map-ai-generated-audio-files/
Thank you, Robert. Couldn't sleep, drawn to my computer. Reading your comforting thoughts eased my mind. We're going to win this! there are more of us! and a much more 'woke' generation coming to voting age. I think TCinLA's suggestion is right, we should refrain from injecting the Georgia proceeding with electoral significance it doesn't have! And, follow the courage of Fani Willis and the amazing work she's done for our task ahead.
Did I get this right? It seems to me that that greatest part of the Georgia indictment are: 1. RICO - I love it, corruption, criminality being identified and named and prosecuted. And 2. State-based - no opportunity for pardons. Atty Hubbell has posited some possible squeaking into federal territory, but it doesn't seem very threatening. Did I get this right?
And then, think about this woman, Fani Willis, what persistence, what detail, and how much this will consume her as the trial(s) unfold. How remarkable she is!
Several things for Trump to think about following his charging, arraignment, and booking in Georgia on charges of interfering in and seeking to overturn Georgia’s 2020 Presidential election results.
First, Georgia has stricter laws governing the conditions of release. Bail can be granted only if there is “no significant risk of intimidating witnesses or otherwise obstructing the administration of justice,” per Georgia’s witness intimidation law. Trump, who has been known to attack judges and witnesses — including his former vice president — on his Truth Social platform, warned in early August after his D.C. arraignment: “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!” (In a filing, Trump’s lawyers called the post “generalized political speech, not directed to this case.”) If Trump’s prior behavior is any guide to his likely future behavior it appears he has a very short fuse on controlling his behavior toward witnesses. Just as in the federal indictments he and his attorneys will receive pretrial discovery including witness testimony. Will he seek to disparage and intimidate those witnesses?
Trump will have a mug shot and be fingerprinted: Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat has said that if Trump is charged, he will be subject to a mug shot and fingerprinting. The former president did not get a mug shot when he was arraigned in Washington, Miami or Manhattan. Trump has until Aug. 25 to surrender at the Fulton County Jail for booking. The Fulton County jail is a pretty squalid environment. That will undoubtedly be a stark contrast to the gilded Mar-a-Lago or Bedminster Golf Club lifestyle Trump is used to.
Also, in Georgia there are no restrictions on televising of courtroom proceedings including pretrial motions hearings. This will provide increased transparency on court proceedings and see Trump properly treated and portrayed as a criminal defendant. Will this tarnish the image of strength he seeks to portray and protect? Time will tell.